Mechanisms and Functional Outcomes of Exercise Progression Models in the Elderly

The aim of this study is to devise a sufficiently high intensity training program that provided an optimal stimulus to remove the peripheral factors known to reduce functional capacity, and can be cardiovascular and orthopedically well tolerated by the elderly. Findings from study laboratories have suggested that a regional specific training stimulus (RSTS) results in rapid improvements in both vascular and muscular function. RSTS is a novel combination of resistance training and aerobic training applied simultaneously, and in a serial manner, to specific regions of the body. It involves high-intensity and frequency muscle contractions, generating a targeted exercise stimulus, without producing excessive cardiovascular or orthopedic stress. The hypothesis is that initiating training with RSTS at multiple, strategically selected peripheral sites, in a serial manner will elicit local vascular and muscular changes, thereby preparing individuals at elevated risk of losing independence, to respond and progress more favorably to whole-body exercise.